Jewish Sorority, Sigma Alpha Epsilon Pi, Kicks Back into Gear

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Since its establishment on campus in 2007, Sigma Alpha Epsilon Pi has developed into an integral part of the Jewish community at UCLA. Founded in 1998 at UC Davis, the sorority’s unofficial motto is, “Jewish First, Greek Second.” Sigma is known nationwide as a means for Jewish girls to join a fun community of friends that holds similar values and ideals.

As a member of Sigma Alpha Mu (Sammy), I have noticed that Sigma and my fraternity share many common values. Both of our organizations take pride in being genuine, non-judgmental and caring. Unfortunately, these are the sorts of values that are becoming more and more rare in Greek life.

As often happens with Greek organizations, Sigma at UCLA hit a rough patch last year, and they lost more than half of their family because many of them were graduating. Sigma plans to focus on recruiting next quarter to reclaim some of that lost magic. As part of its recruitment events, the chapter will focus on sharing its unique intersection between Jewish and Greek life. They will hold events next quarter to show what life in Sigma is like, and they will participate in this year’s Bruin Day for incoming freshmen on April 15.

Kate Burt, a newly initiated Sigma sister and the secretary of the sorority, told me that what makes Sigma appealing to many girls is how welcoming it is. For example, during Rush Week, Sigma focuses on a process that is straightforward and simply centered on having girls get to know one another through laid-back events. The sorority has also boasted the highest GPA in the Multi-Interest Greek Council several times over the past few years and has also maintained the highest overall GPA among Sigma chapters nationwide.

As the only Jewish sorority on campus, Sigma possesses a community of girls who attend Shabbat every week and host Jewish learning and community service events, in addition to their traditional social events.

In my time as a member of Sammy, I have had the opportunity to meet great girls from many different sororities, but I must say that none of them compare to the girls of Sigma.

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